Packet networking is a form of data communication in which data packets are routed from a source device to a destination device. Packets can be networked directly between a source node and a destination node, or the packets can be relayed through a number of intermediate nodes.
A wireless network can include a wireless device being connected to a network through a base station that is wired to the network. The wireless device can transmit data packets that are received by the base station and then routed through the network. The wireless network can include many base stations that are each wired to the network.
FIG. 1 shows a prior art mesh network that includes a gateway 110 connecting a client device 140 to a network (internet) 100 through fixed access nodes 120, 130. The connections between the gateway 110 and the access nodes 120, 130 can be wireless. Additionally, the connection between the access nodes 120, 130 and the client 140 can be wireless. Wireless connections typically are subject to conditions that can make the connections unreliable. Such conditions include fading, multi-path and signal interference.
Some mesh networks can additionally include mobile access nodes that physically change their location over time. Mobile access nodes add another layer of complexity because typically optimal routes continually change for mobile access nodes. Therefore, the routing selection for a mobile access node is more complex than the routing selection for a fixed access node.
Mesh networks can additionally include multiple transmission channels, in which access nodes must select the best transmission channel. The changing physical location of mobile access nodes typically requires the mobile access nodes to select the best transmission channel. Transmission channel selection can be required to be completed while the mobile access node is connected to the mesh network.
It is desirable to have a wireless mesh network that includes fixed and mobile access nodes. It is desirable that mobile access nodes continually analyzes the quality of transmission links and transmission frequencies of the mesh network, and select an optimal transmission frequency from among all available transmission frequencies.